9-Day Uganda Wildlife Safari

Day-by-day itinerary

Route: Entebbe / Kampala → Ziwa Rhino Sanctuary → Murchison Falls → Kibale → Queen Elizabeth → Bwindi → Lake Bunyonyi → Lake Mburo → Entebbe / Kampala

1. Day 1

   Entebbe / Kampala via Ziwa to Murchison Falls

   After breakfast you leave Entebbe / Kampala and travel on toward Murchison Falls via Ziwa, travelling north through Ziwa and the Masindi road country. Arrival is followed by check-in and a first drive into open savanna, borassus palms and the Victoria Nile forcing through a narrow rock gorge. Wildlife commonly associated with this area includes elephant, giraffe, lion, hippo, crocodile and Uganda kob. At Murchison the Nile is squeezed through a gap only a few metres wide before dropping to the valley below, and a launch trip runs to the base of the falls. The vehicle and driver-guide are private to your party throughout. You return for dinner and an overnight stay at Murchison Falls.

2. Day 2

   Murchison Falls Game Drive and Nile Cruise

   Combine a game drive with the confirmed Victoria Nile boat programme and waterfall viewing. This is open savanna, borassus palms and the Victoria Nile forcing through a narrow rock gorge. Species commonly associated with the area include elephant, giraffe, lion, hippo, crocodile and Uganda kob. The vehicle and driver-guide are private to your party throughout. Dinner and overnight are at your accommodation in Murchison Falls.

3. Day 3

   Murchison Falls to Kibale

   Following an early breakfast, the day begins with the road transfer from Murchison Falls to Kibale, crossing western Uganda's tea estates and crater-lake country. Once you reach Kibale there is time to check in before heading out among moist tropical forest running along the Albertine Rift, one of Africa's richest primate habitats. Your guide works the area for chimpanzees, red colobus, L'Hoest's monkey and a long list of forest birds, with sightings varying by season and conditions. Chimpanzee tracking at Kibale is a permit-dependent activity arranged through the park authority, and places must be confirmed in advance. Dinner and overnight are at your camp or lodge in Kibale.

4. Day 4

   Kibale Chimpanzee Tracking to Queen Elizabeth

   The morning is set aside for chimpanzee tracking in Kibale, a permit-dependent activity arranged through the park authority and confirmed in advance. Afterwards the journey continues from Kibale toward Queen Elizabeth, crossing the equator and descending into the western Rift Valley. After check-in and a chance to freshen up, you head out into savanna, crater lakes and the Kazinga Channel linking Lake Edward and Lake George. There is the possibility of seeing elephant, buffalo, hippo, Uganda kob and, in the Ishasha sector, lions sometimes seen in fig trees, depending on movement and conditions on the day. A boat cruise on the Kazinga Channel gives close views of hippo pods, buffalo and one of the densest concentrations of water birds in the region. You return for dinner and an overnight stay at Queen Elizabeth.

5. Day 5

   Queen Elizabeth Game Drive and Kazinga Channel Cruise

   Take a game drive and the confirmed Kazinga Channel boat cruise. This is savanna, crater lakes and the Kazinga Channel linking Lake Edward and Lake George. There is the possibility of seeing elephant, buffalo, hippo, Uganda kob and, in the Ishasha sector, lions sometimes seen in fig trees, though sightings are never guaranteed. Dinner and overnight are at your accommodation in Queen Elizabeth.

6. Day 6

   Queen Elizabeth / Ishasha to Bwindi

   Bags are loaded after breakfast and you depart Queen Elizabeth / Ishasha bound for Bwindi, travelling the winding roads of the south-western highlands through terraced farmland. Lunch and check-in come first, then an afternoon drive through steep Afromontane rainforest ridges and valleys in south-western Uganda. Your guide works the area for mountain gorillas, forest elephant, many primate species and numerous Albertine Rift endemics, with sightings varying by season and conditions. Gorilla trekking in Bwindi is a permit-dependent activity, and a permit must be confirmed in advance for every trekker. You return for dinner and an overnight stay at Bwindi.

7. Day 7

   Bwindi Gorilla Tracking to Lake Bunyonyi

   The morning is set aside for gorilla tracking in Bwindi, a permit-dependent activity that goes ahead only with a confirmed permit for every trekker. Afterwards the journey continues from Bwindi toward Lake Bunyonyi, winding through the terraced hills around Kabale. On arrival at Lake Bunyonyi you check in and have the rest of the day to enjoy a deep, island-dotted lake ringed by terraced hills in south-western Uganda. Lake Bunyonyi is a quiet, scenic stop where the pace slows after the primate-tracking days. Dinner and overnight are at your camp or lodge in Lake Bunyonyi.

8. Day 8

   Lake Bunyonyi to Lake Mburo

   Following an early breakfast, the day begins with the road transfer from Lake Bunyonyi to Lake Mburo, travelling the Masaka road through Ankole cattle country. You arrive in time to settle in, and the day continues with a game drive across acacia woodland, rocky ridges and a chain of small lakes in western Uganda. This is good country in which to look for zebra, impala, eland, buffalo, hippo and the shy sitatunga in swampy margins. Lake Mburo is one of the few Ugandan parks that also allows walking safaris and horseback rides alongside vehicle drives. You return for dinner and an overnight stay at Lake Mburo.

9. Day 9

   Lake Mburo to Entebbe / Kampala

   Breakfast is taken before you set out from Lake Mburo for the drive to Entebbe / Kampala, following the lakeshore road from Kampala. You reach Entebbe or Kampala in the afternoon, with the final stretch of road giving time to look back over the journey. Entebbe sits on a peninsula in Lake Victoria and is the standard entry and exit point for Ugandan itineraries. You are dropped at your Entebbe or Kampala hotel or the airport in the late afternoon.